1. Understanding the role of different species in the transmission of multi-host pathogens, such as rabies virus, is vital for effective control strategies. Across most of sub-Saharan Africa domestic dogs Canis familiaris are considered the reservoir for rabies, but the role of wildlife has been long debated. Here we explore the multi-host transmission dynamics of rabies across south-east Tanzania.
2. Between January 2011 and July 2019, data on probable rabies cases were collected in the regions of Lindi and Mtwara. Hospital records of animal-bite patients presenting to healthcare facilities were used as sentinels for animal contact tracing. The timing, location and species of probable rabid animals were used to reconstruct transmission trees to infer who infected whom and the relative frequencies of within- and between-species transmission.
3. During the study, 688 probable human rabies exposures were identified, resulting in 47 deaths. Of these exposures, 389 were from domestic dogs (56.5%) and 262 from jackals (38.1%). Over the same period, 549 probable animal rabies cases were traced: 303 in domestic dogs (55.2%) and 221 in jackals (40.3%), with the remainder in domestic cats and other wildlife species.
4. Although dog-to-dog transmission was most commonly inferred (40.5% of transmission events), a third of inferred events involved wildlife-to-wildlife transmission (32.6%), and evidence suggested some sustained transmission chains within jackal populations.
5. A steady decline in probable rabies cases in both humans and animals coincided with the implementation of widespread domestic dog vaccination during the first 6 years of the study. Following the lapse of this program, dog rabies cases began to increase in one of the northernmost districts.
6. Synthesis and applications. In south-east Tanzania, despite a relatively high incidence of rabies in wildlife and evidence of wildlife-to-wildlife transmission, domestic dogs remain essential to the reservoir of infection. Continued dog vaccination alongside improved surveillance would allow a fuller understanding of the role of wildlife in maintaining transmission in this area. Nonetheless, dog vaccination clearly suppressed rabies in both domestic dog and wildlife populations, reducing both public health and conservation risks and, if sustained, has potential to eliminate rabies from this region.

中文翻译：

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坦桑尼亚东南部狂犬病的水库动态以及跨物种传播和家犬疫苗接种的作用

1. 了解不同物种在多宿主病原体（如狂犬病病毒）传播中的作用对于有效的控制策略至关重要。在撒哈拉以南非洲的大部分家犬中，家犬犬被认为是狂犬病的宿主，但野生动物的作用一直存在争议。在这里，我们探讨了狂犬病在坦桑尼亚东南部的多宿主传播动态。
2. 2011 年 1 月至 2019 年 7 月期间，在林迪和姆特瓦拉地区收集了可能的狂犬病病例数据。就诊于医疗机构的动物咬伤患者的医院记录被用作追踪动物接触者的哨兵。可能的狂犬病动物的时间、位置和物种被用来重建传播树，以推断谁感染了谁以及种内和种间传播的相对频率。
3. 在研究期间，确定了 688 例可能的人类狂犬病暴露，导致 47 人死亡。在这些暴露中，389 起来自家犬（56.5%），262 起来自豺狼（38.1%）。在同一时期，追踪到了 549 起可能的动物狂犬病病例：303 起家犬 (55.2%) 和 221 起豺狼 (40.3%)，其余是家猫和其他野生动物物种。
4. 虽然最常见的推断是狗对狗的传播（40.5% 的传播事件），但三分之一的推断事件涉及野生动物与野生动物的传播（32.6%），并且有证据表明豺狼种群中存在一些持续的传播链。
5. 人类和动物狂犬病疑似病例的稳步下降恰逢该研究的前 6 年广泛实施家犬疫苗接种。在该计划失效后，最北部地区之一的犬狂犬病病例开始增加。
6. 合成与应用。在坦桑尼亚东南部，尽管野生动物中狂犬病的发病率相对较高，并且有证据表明存在野生动物与野生动物之间的传播，但家犬仍然是感染宿主的必需品。持续的狗疫苗接种以及改进的监测将使人们更全面地了解野生动物在维持该地区传播中的作用。尽管如此，狗接种疫苗明显抑制了家犬和野生动物种群的狂犬病，降低了公共卫生和保护风险，如果持续下去，有可能消除该地区的狂犬病。